Ideas for Engagement

Our membership meeting on January 23, 2021 used an online tool called “Jamboards”  to brainstorm responses to various questions.  It was a fun, and efficient way to get the members present to contribute to the conversation and we ended up with some great lists.

Here’s the list of Ideas for Engagement/Increasing Membership:

• Post more on our Facebook with links to join
• Ask people who you see they are hooking in the area, or selling hooking supplies in the area and get them to join
• Rejoin ATHA so that we can be listed in their regional events at the back of magazine. I always look there to see what is happening around me.  Also, I don’t think we are listed in Rug Hooking Magazine events
• Post newsletter on our FB group, more people will see it
• Host a zoom wool sale with stuff from storage
• Hook in public—let people see hooking happening
• Wool sale at the storage unit
• Host zoom classes/seminars and ask attendees to join the Guild
• Publicize our Guild so that people know our story…newspapers and other media outlets
• Reduced dues for the first year
• Lower dues or discount for first year or multiple years
• Individual members post to THEIR social media pages
• When someone gets a free kit, ask them to join the Guild when they enjoy it
• Use the newsletter (beyond the guild news that is needed) to just build a sense of community. Invite members to send something short and specific. Example: please send a photo of your hooking/wool workspace, and in just one or two sentences, describe what you like about it and what you don’t, or what works and what you’d like to change about it!
• Send in a photo of you and your hooking, and the pets who “help” you! In just one or two sentences, tell us what you’re hooking and how your pet helps you!
• Do you have, hung or placed, a rug or hooked piece that is your favorite in your home decor? Send a photo with a quick description of the rug and how you found the perfect spot for it!
• Just thought that asking people to send a photo with a quick remark or two would end up, when put together with others’ submissions, would be fun and interesting.
• Offer a nice door prize at random to one of the members who sent something in?
• Facebook page for guild that any member can post to and people need to post to it!
• Get more publicity somehow.
• Have Zoom hook-ins.
• Hook-ins at parks around the state and have parking lot sales for vendors.
• Links to hooking videos
• members should recruit through their own Facebook pages (person to persons works best)
• Also members should use Front Porch Forum or local list serves to promote hooking
• Guild can hire teachers to teach via Zoom (need to be a member to attend)
• Save any videos from speakers/workshops with permission.
• Have a goal to hook in as many towns in Vermont (251 club for hooking); anyone could just   say, ” I am going to X town Saturday to hook and then people could just show up”.

If you have MORE ideas for us, please drop an email to Barb@irislines.com and she’ll add them to this list.